Jim Kipp's Man Cave

You wouldn’t think you’d need a big space to build mini engines, but model-motor enthusiast Jim Kipp collects more than pint-sized powerplants. We met Jim when he took apart a Black Widow 1⁄3-scale V8 for the Mar. 2013 issue, and as soon as we saw his Lake Elsinore, California, man-cave, we knew we’d go back to scope out the rest of his collection. Jim kindly invited us and model Megan Belet (mostly Megan) to spend some time looking through his assorted muscle cars, hot rods, miniature machining tools, and racing memorabilia. Along with showcasing his excellent taste in classic gear, Jim’s garage also gives him a place to work on his scaled-down engines and host slot-car parties, which he does a few times a year. We’re hoping we get an invite to the next one.

2/21Can you call yourself a hot rod collector if you don’t have a red ’69 Camaro in the building? One of the very first cars Jim bought after starting the garage build in 1998 was this Z/28 Rally Sport.

9/21We would happily get rid of all our living-room furniture if we could replace it with this 155-foot Euro King slot-car track. Jim says the fast cars will make a lap in less than two seconds. The dragstrip in the back ain’t bad, either.